Brian Dianis: Candidate Profile

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Note: Answers provided have not been edited for grammar, misspellings or typos. In some instances, candidate claims that could not be immediately verified have been omitted. Jump to:BioQA Bio City: AlgonquinWebsite: BrianDianis.comTwitter: Candidate did not respond.Facebook: Candidate did not respond.Office sought: Algonquin Village Board Age: Candidate did not respond.Family: Married 25 years to Laura, 3 daughters - one in vet school at Univ of Illinois, one studying Special Education at TCU and one attending Jacobs HSOccupation: Program ManagerEducation: B.S. Finance - Northern Illinois University, 1986 Associate in Insurance Services (AIS) - Insurance Institute of America, 2004 Associate in General Insuarnce (AINS) - Insurance Institute of America, 2010Civic involvement: Algonquin's annual National Night Out, Ted Spella Leadership School, Connect 300 Community Advisory Council (President), Connect 300, Village of Streamwood Community Awareness Commission (co-Chair), have volunteered at Northern Illinois Food Bank, Helping Paws Animal Shelter, Junior Achievement teacher, ALITHSA youth soccer coachElected offices held: Village of Algonquin Trustee - 2005 to presentQuestions Answers What is your stance on the Longmeadow Parkway project? Is the fight against it realistic at this point. Please explain.I have been a supporter of the Longmeadow Parkway project for more than a decade and I'm extremely excited to see the progress that has been made towards implementation. This has been an incredibly collaborative effort that will provide many benefits to our community and region. I encourage those that remain opposed to this important project to continue an open and constructive dialogue throughout the build phase that will ensure that plans are followed and adjustments, if needed, are made.Many municipalities are met with the challenge of maintaining steady revenue streams while trying to lower the tax burden on businesses and property owners. How has the village handled that balancing act so far, and how would you improve/maintain that situation?This has been very challenging especially given the lack of stability at the state level, the threat of reducing the Local Government Distributive Fund and the volatility of sales tax revenue in a still recovering economy. The village is working very hard to attract growth to expand our tax base and I'm proud to say we saw twenty-five new business openings during 2016. We have also taken proactive measures such as building the fiber optic infrastructure to be utilized within the corporate campus in order to make Algonquin more attractive. I will continue to push for marketing of the corporate campus, promote further development of the East Algonquin corridor which will be assisted by the implementation of Longmeadow Parkway, and support downtown redevelopment which will expand our unique small business offerings and attract visitors to our community. The village has also been extremely proactive in effectively and efficiently utilizing our resources by establishing intergovernmental agreements. These agreements include things such as providing inspection services for neighboring communities and performing vehicle maintenance for entities such as the Fire Protection District. This creates a small revenue stream, but also ensures full utilization of our village personnel.How do you envision the village developing economically over the next several years, and where in the village should officials be focusing their efforts?The village needs to focus retail and commercial growth and retention in three geographic areas; the East Algonquin corridor, the downtown historic district and the Algonquin corporate campus. Each area has unique attributes and challenges that requires unique planning and maintaining open communication with existing business owners will help identify ways in which the village can support these important partners within our community. We must continue to create a climate that demonstrates a desire to attract and retain quality businesses that will benefit our residents and the community as a whole. We must also continue to work with our state legislators to create a much more favorable business climate overall in the state.Describe your plans for maintaining/improving the village's downtown district.I fully support the downtown planning study and streetscape plan that represent a comprehensive plan for improving various aspects of the downtown area including lighting, signage, pedestrian mobility and parking. As can be seen, modifications to the downtown parking have already been implemented and the feedback has been very positive. The village has a number of significant infrastructure improvement projects in various phases of engineering review and these will serve as the base for additional improvements in the near future. I will encourage the village to continue to hold events in the downtown area, which will support the local businesses and showcase our amazing natural assets and parks. We must also continue to partner with the business owners and attract groups to hold events, such as the extremely popular classic car show. I want our downtown to be something of which our entire community can be proud.Where in the village's budget, if anywhere, could expenses be trimmed? And on the other hand, should the budget allot more money toward any particular area, service or village department?I feel that our departments do an incredible job in forecasting revenues and prioritizing expenditures that maximize the value of those dollars. As we have done for years, we utilize a constraint budgeting process that ensures a balanced budget. We have continued to drive out operational efficiencies and our staff has created a cross-departmental ECO (Engage, Conserve and Optimize) committee that works across boundaries to find ways to save and be more sustainable. Due to a period of very rapid growth 20 to 25 years ago, we are in need of maintaining our aging infrastructure which is driving a need for large capital improvements. Even with these necessary expenditures we have been able to both maintain a balanced budget and reduce the local property tax rate which is already one of the lowest in the region. With respect to allotting additional money, I would like to see more funding devoted to reforestation of the trees that were removed due to the decimating effects of the Emerald Ash Borer.What other issues, if any, are important to you as a candidate for this office?Addressing the needs of the growing senior population is something that I will pursue if re-elected. I have heard from residents and neighbors that there are not enough activities and opportunities geared toward that demographic. With the opening of Clarendale of Algonquin as well as renewed interest in age restricted developments and senior living centers in the region, I feel there is a great opportunity to partner with our neighboring municipalities to create cost-effective programming and events.Please name one current leader who most inspires you.My oldest daughter, who does not consider herself a leader, yet drives others to do better in school and volunteers all of her free time.What is the biggest lesson you learned at home growing up?Hard work pays off.If life gave you one do-over, what would you spend it on?Spending more time playing board games with my kids. You never realize how fast they grow up.What was your favorite subject in school and how did it help you in later life?Statistics, which helped drive my analytical side that I now use daily in my current jobIf you could give your children only one piece of advice, what would it be?Never underestimate the importance of networking.